New plan proposed for Henrietta housing

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Campus Crest, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based developer, has revived its proposed student housing project in Henrietta.

The developer wants to build an off-campus housing option for students at the Rochester Institute of Technology. It would be a privately owned development, not an RIT dorm: 225 units, 600-bed on 20 acres of a 73-acre property it owns between East River Road and Bailey Road, next to the RIT campus. Campus Crest owns similar developments across the country.

The company proposed a similar project last year, but ultimately withdrew it after vigorous opposition from nearby residents. Residents said they were concerned about the development generating additional traffic on East River Road and also about its visual impact.

Engineers tried to address those concerns in the new proposal, says John Caruso, president of Passero Associates, which is working for Campus Crest on the project. They changed the project layout so that the buildings are located deeper in the site, better separating them from the nearby single-family houses, Caruso says. And they moved the access road to Bailey Road, which should address the concerns about traffic on East River Road, he says.

Campus Crest representatives haven't discussed the revised plans with neighbors, though they are working with town officials to set up community meetings on the project, Caruso says.

To proceed, the company needs the Town Board to rezone the 20-acre project site. Company representatives presented the proposal to Town Board members last week and received some positive feedback. Town Supervisor Jack Moore said the project has potential to draw some students out of town neighborhoods and back near the campus.

"I think it's a different project," said Town Board member Janet Zinck.